I came across a conversation Arthur C. Clarke and Buzz Aldrin had. In that talk, Sir Clarke is fond of quoting his friend Larry Niven who said. “The dinosaurs became extinct because they didn’t have a space program. And if we become extinct because we don’t have a space program, it’ll serve us right!”
Sir Arthur Clarke was a writer and pioneer from scientific discovery to science fiction and his work has influenced countless others. He was in the Royal Air Force during WWII, had a degree in Physics and Mathematics, and was knighted in 1988.
I wanted to dive a little deeper but then I came across some of his quotes. To keep this short I will just post some of those quotes I find thought provoking and funny. And maybe some of my own commentary on the quote.
Arthur C Clarke quotes: with my comments in ()
I don’t pretend we have all the answers. But the questions are certainly worth thinking about. (I think a lot of the problems of today are people thinking they have the answer without thinking about the question.)
The Information Age offers much to mankind, and I would like to think that we will rise to the challenges it presents. But it is vital to remember that information — in the sense of raw data — is not knowledge, that knowledge is not wisdom, and that wisdom is not foresight. But information is the first essential step to all of these.
Yet now, as he roared across the night sky toward an unknown destiny, he found himself facing that bleak and ultimate question which so few men can answer to their satisfaction. What have I done with my life, he asked himself, that the world will be poorer if I leave it? —Glide Path, 1963
(This comes from Glide Path a novel based on his experience in WWII. Probably my favorite quote for the reason of its impact on me. I think I will save my comments for another time but I will say funerals never should be the mourning of someone’s passing but the celebration of one’s life.)
Behind every man now alive stand thirty ghosts, for that is the ratio by which the dead outnumber the living. —Foreword to 2001: A Space Odyssey, 1968
In his 90th birthday message, Clarke also addressed his legacy: I’m sometimes asked how I would like to be remembered. I’ve had a diverse career as a writer, underwater explorer, space promoter and science populariser. Of all these, I want to be remembered most as a writer — one who entertained readers, and, hopefully, stretched their imaginations as well. (YES)
What we need is a machine that will let us see the other guy’s point of view. (Not only see, but understand how that POV was derived. May not agree but you will come away with more understanding.)
Funny quotes
I don’t believe in astrology; I’m a Sagittarius and we’re skeptical.
The best measure of a man’s honesty isn’t his income tax return. It’s the zero adjust on his bathroom scale. (Before digital scales)
The best proof that there’s intelligent life in outer space is the fact that it hasn’t come here.
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